Video: Kate, Queen and Camilla hit the town together

Closed captioning of: Kate, Queen and Camilla hit the town together

>>>the leading ladies of britain's
royal family
enjoyed a high-profile
field trip
today. nbc is at
buckingham palace
with more on the queen's
tea party
. good morning.

>>good morning, natalie. it's a
big day
out for three ladies of the
royal household
. it's the first time the queen,
kate
and
camilla
have carried out an official engagement together. they're going to be attending a
tea party
and also promoting the queen's roses. [ applause ]

>>an up market luxury grocery store, the venue of choice for a royal first. three generations of royals doing for british produce, what
kate
has done for british fashion. her majesty wanted a day out with her sons and grandsons' wives.

>>the queen couldn't have been happier, frankly at
buckingham palace
last year for the
royal wedding
. seeing
william
happily marrying
kate
, a girl she likes, she respects, she sees
kate
as a very good influence on
william
. a great thing for the
royal family
.

>>a unique bit of bonding time for the queen and her two duchesses. how different from
princess diana
's day, when
diana
thought
camilla
a rottweiller. as for
camilla
and the monarch, they're on better terms, too. past tensions pushed aid aside and
kate
seems to be a bonding force. even with
diana
's ring on her finger. with
william
away on service and
kate
tirelessly working solo royal circuit. she's carving a fine role for herself. with the more experienced women there to guide her through it. the queen never had an outing with
diana
, so this is really significant. it's the monarch's way of bringing
kate
in close and making her feel at home. back to you, natalie.

LONDON — When three generations of royalty step out for a shop, they don’t go to just any store. For the first time, Queen Elizabeth II, Camilla, and Kate made an official visit together — and headed to the luxury London department store Fortnum and Mason, known locally as the queen’s grocer.

The three ladies, all wearing different shades of blue, arrived in the queen’s Rolls Royce and were greeted at the door by London Mayor Boris Johnson while musicians played in the background.

Fortnum and Mason, established in 1707, is a London landmark, with its cabinets of exotic teas and a café fit for, well, royalty.

While there, the women were given a tour of the food hall, where the queen inspected the honey and preserves, Camilla checked out the bakery and Kate took a look at the famous teas. The two duchesses then sampled sweets at the store’s confectionery department.

Kate, Camilla and Queen Elizabeth II leave department store Fortnum and Mason in London for their first official outing together.

The three also met military personnel involved in the Gifts for Troops program, which sends packages to soldiers in Afghanistan. Lucky store staff members, as well as former workers from 60 years ago, were treated to a tea party.

“She didn't come very often but I did see her in the shop once or twice," Joan Goff, 86, who worked at Fortnum's during World War II, told the Press Association. "We had to sneak a look. I think it was probably in the clothes department. Today I told her that I had been here when I was 14 and she said, 'how marvelous.'"

Kate wore a blue Missoni coat with gray heels and accessorized her look with a daffodil pin to mark St. David’s Day. St. David is the patron saint of Wales, where the duchess lives with her husband, Will, on a Royal Air Force base.

William’s deployment to the Falklands at the beginning of February has resulted in a coming-out party of sorts for Kate. She made her first solo appearance at the National Gallery on Feb. 8, which was followed by a visit to Liverpool on Valentine’s Day and a trip to Oxford on the 20th.

Next week, the duchess will join the queen once again as she kicks off her diamond jubilee tour around the U.K., celebrating 60 years on the throne with a visit to Leicester.

"The Queen couldn’t have been happier at Buckingham Palace last year for the royal wedding,” NBC royal expert Camilla Tominey said on TODAY Thursday. “She sees Kate as a very good influence on William, a great thing for the royal family."

This is one of a set of six Diamond Wedding Anniversary stamps issued by the Royal Mail to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the wedding of Princess Elizabeth to Lt. Philip Mountbatten.
(Royal Mail via EPA)
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Another of the Diamond Wedding Anniversary stamps issued to celebrate the 60th wedding anniversary. The photos were chosen from the albums of the royal family.
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Britain's Princess Elizabeth and The Duke of Edinburgh walk at the home of the duke's uncle, Earl Mountbatten, on their honeymoon in November 1947.
(The Royal Collection via AFP - Getty Images)
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Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip revisit Broadlands, where 60 years ago in November 1947, they spent their wedding night. Broadlands, located in Hampshire, had been the home of Prince Philip's uncle, Earl Mountbatten.
(Tim Graham / Pool via AP)
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Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip are joined at London's Clarence House on Sunday, Nov. 18, by members of their family on the occasion of a dinner hosted by their eldest son, Prince Charles. Front row, Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, 3rd left, and her husband Prince Philip,the Duke of Edinburgh, 3rd right, Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, 2nd left, and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall, 2nd right, and the Queen and Prince Philip's grandsons, Prince William, left, and Prince Harry, right. 2nd row from left, Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence and his wife the Princess Royal with her daughter Zara Philips, Princess Beatrice, Prince Andrew Duke of York, Princess Eugenie, Prince Edward Earl of Wessex and his wife the Countess of Wessex.
(Tim Graham / AP)
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The Royal family arrive under a rainbow for the wedding anniversary celebration service at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday, Nov. 19, 2007.
(Jeremy Selwyn / EPA)
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